episode_0009

010

“Huh? Oh?”

With a bewildered expression, Jin Soyeon alternately glanced between me and Yoo Seolhyun, her eyes darting back and forth.

She seemed utterly unable to comprehend the situation.

Well, that’s understandable since there was no reason for Yoo Seolhyun to team up with me.

“So… was that a joke?”

Dragging out her words, Jin Soyeon turned her head slightly towards me, her lips twitching ever so slightly.

Her eyes demanded an explanation.

“A joke? No way.”

Yoo Seolhyun replied with a mischievous smile, causing Jin Soyeon’s lips to purse as if she didn’t quite like something.

“But you’re good academically.”

“Oh. So what?”

Yoo Seolhyun continued to smile slyly, urging me to speak.

“Jinhyuk doesn’t have good practical or training scores, so why bother teaming up with him? Wouldn’t it be better to work with someone else?”

“Well, that might be true.”

She glanced at me briefly.

Jin Soyeon, do you have a lot to say?

“Our team’s strength is enough with just you and me, so I just needed someone to take on the role of the brain. We don’t know what kind of test it will be.”

“Oh, I see.”

Jin Soyeon reluctantly accepted it, but she gave Yoo Seolhyun a suspicious look.

Yoo Seolhyun maintained a polite smile and simply met her gaze.

“But Soyeon, why did you want to team up with Jinhuk?”

“Huh? Oh, well…”

Jin Soyeon glanced at me out of the corner of her eye.

Her lips twitched a few times.

“I just wanted to take care of him a bit. Watch him train. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a teammate to bring along?”

“Why are you being so harsh today?”

As I muttered under my breath, Jin Soyeon smirked and then began to speak enthusiastically.

Judging by her expression, she seemed to be bringing up past events again.

“Oh? Who was it that almost failed if they hadn’t taken the bus during the practical exam back then? Wasn’t it me?”

“You kept asking for help with studying for every written exam.”

“When did I do that?”

“You begged me to help you study all day because you said you’d lose your allowance if you failed this written exam…”

“Oh, I didn’t hear that!”

Jin Soyeon covered her ears and shook her head.

What a child.

“Hehe.”

Yoo Seolhyun smiled at our banter.

“You two get along well. I heard you broke up.”

“Well, yeah.”

Jin Soyeon glanced at me, her words trailing off.

“But who said we broke up?”

“Why do you care?”

“Oh, I didn’t mean anything bad. If you felt bad, I’ll apologize. Sorry.”

Jin Soyeon’s eyebrows twitched slightly, seeming a bit annoyed.

It seemed like she was deliberately teasing Jin Soyeon.

You have a bad personality, Yoo Seolhyun.

“Oh. Is it already this late? Then I’ll go first.”

Yoo Seolhyun checked her watch and abruptly ended the conversation, giving Jin Soyeon and me a quick glance before bidding us farewell.

“See you next time. Jinhuk, Soyeon.”

With that, Yoo Seolhyun walked away, and Seonari, who had been quietly listening, followed her.

Jin Soyeon quietly watched their retreating figures.

Then, she quickly turned her gaze towards me.

“You. Seems like you’ve gotten pretty close with her.”

“Getting close. Just a few words exchanged.”

“Really?”

She grumbled in a slightly annoyed voice.

“They seem quite close for just a casual conversation. What’s going on between them?”

“Nothing much.”

“By the way, isn’t Yoo Hyun acting a bit strange? Is he doing it on purpose?”

“What?”

“Well, you know.”

I pretended not to understand, and Jin Soyeon made a slightly frustrated expression. Then she let out a deep sigh.

“Ugh… never mind. It’s nothing.”

Jin Soyeon muttered quietly to herself, “Anyway, he’s clueless,” and sighed. Who said she’s clueless?

“They don’t seem to get along well. They even gossip behind each other’s backs.”

“It’s not gossip, is it?”

Jin Soyeon shot me a sharp look.

“Oh, so maybe it’s jealousy? This popularity thing.”

“What are you talking about?”

Looking puzzled, Jin Soyeon brushed her hair nervously and replied in a slightly irritated tone.

“Jealousy? What nonsense.”

“Or maybe not. Why are you overreacting?”

“Because you’re talking nonsense.”

I looked at Jin Soyeon, who answered bluntly with a furrowed brow, and thought to myself.

It seems like she’s more bothered by Yoo Seolhyun than I thought.

“Anyway, how is Yoo Seolhyun these days?”

“How so?”

“There are rumors that you’re getting along well with Yoo Seolhyun these days.”

“What?”

Jin Soyeon bit her lower lip for a moment.

“What nonsense is that? That can’t be true.”

“Is that so?”

“You don’t believe those rumors, do you?”

I shrugged my shoulders slightly towards Jin Soyeon, who glanced at me with a questioning look.

“Nothing much.”

“Really? Well, then.”

Jin Soyeon stared at me with an expression containing unknown emotions and nodded slightly.

They seemed to have become quite close compared to their middle school days, but they still had a long way to go.

Alright. I guess there’s nothing I can do about it.

Should I distance myself a bit more to give Yoo Seolhyun and her more time together?

***

Jin Soyeon’s dream was to become a hero.

This dream had been with her since childhood, and there had been no change or hesitation in reaching the present.

The incident that day planted the seed of becoming a hero in her heart, making it a turning point in her life.

That day was nothing short of a turning point in her life, something she would never forget.

So Jin Soyeon, carrying the dream of becoming a hero, passed the Union entrance exam with her childhood friend Lee Jinhyuk.

To be honest, I was quite anxious that Lee Jinhyuk wouldn’t pass the Union exam, but he confidently passed the exam, making Jin Soyeon’s worries seem insignificant.

…Well, he barely passed through the supplementary announcement.

Anyway, isn’t it important that he passed?

So Jin Soyeon was genuinely happy.

Happy to be able to attend Union with him.

As the highest-level hero training institution in South Korea, school life would be quite challenging, but she was ecstatic to be one step closer to her dream with Lee Jinhyuk.

It seemed like there would only be good things ahead.

But…

“Let’s break up.”

Out of the blue, Lee Jinhyuk said.

“Once we graduate from the academy and school life ends, shouldn’t we try a bit of romance?”

Although slightly taken aback by Lee Jinhyuk’s playful words, she soon agreed with him.

Even if they stopped being fake lovers, she firmly believed that their relationship wouldn’t change.

After all, they had been childhood friends for over ten years.

They went to see cherry blossoms together in elementary school, held hands tightly on summer nights to watch fireworks.

Without their parents knowing, they had been caught drinking makgeolli together and had stayed up all night chatting at home.

The relationship they had carefully built up until now was not going to change just because they decided to stop pretending to be lovers.

They had been together since they were very young, and they would continue to be together in the future.

If you were to put it half-jokingly, Jin Soyeon and Lee Jinhyuk had a relationship like pseudo-family.

So, everything should be fine in the future.

This relationship won’t change.

That’s what they thought.

But.

“Jinhyuk, let’s go to the convenience store. I’ll buy you some bread.”

“I’m a bit busy. Why don’t you ask Isiwoon? She seems free right now.”

Since when did he start refusing her offers?

“Let’s go eat. They have steak today!”

“Oh, my stomach doesn’t feel great today. I’m fine, you go with the others.”

Jinhyuk started to reject her suggestions subtly.

Back in middle school, he used to hang out with her on fake dates.

Was there something bothering him?

No, his tone and behavior were the same as usual.

But when she tried to approach him and talk to him, he would respond well and laugh at her jokes, so she didn’t feel any negativity or resentment.

Then what could be the reason?

As she pondered over this, their homeroom teacher mentioned selecting team members for the performance evaluation.

Teammates, teammates…

Soyeon smiled to herself.

Who else would take care of him if not her?

Since Jinhyuk was weak in practical evaluations.

He would be grateful if she teamed up with him.

Being with Jinhyuk wasn’t bad for Soyeon either.

They had been together for a long time, and they got along well. While individual abilities were important for team performance evaluations, teamwork was the most crucial, right?

…she thought as she approached him and suggested teaming up.

“You’re on my team.”

Yoo Seolhyun grinned and gave a strange answer, didn’t she?

She didn’t know why Yoo Seolhyun teamed up with Jinhyuk, but if she was with someone like Yoo Seolhyun, he wouldn’t fail in the performance evaluation, so it might not be bad for Jinhyuk.

But after that day, they started talking to each other more frequently.

They had to discuss a lot of things as team members for the performance evaluation next week, but Seolhyun’s attitude bothered her a bit.

She couldn’t pinpoint it, but it felt uncomfortable.

Was it the subtle eye smiles?

Or the natural skinship when she patted his shoulder?

And Jinhyuk just laughed as he always did.

“…”

Thinking about this, she suddenly remembered that a new cafe had opened recently and was having an opening sale.

She should take Jinhyuk there and have some sweet cake. Sweet food was the best for stress relief.

If he rejects again today, she won’t take it.

“There’s a new cafe near the terminal, right? They’re having a discount these days. Let’s go this Saturday.”

“Oh, this Saturday? It doesn’t seem possible.”

“What? Again?”

“Sorry, sorry. I have a prior commitment. And besides, I’ll be busy this week because of the performance evaluation. I have a lot of research to do.”

“You’re always like this.”

Seolhyun had time to hang out with Jinhyuk and others.

“Anyway, sorry, let’s meet next Monday.”

“Wait.”

As soon as the class ended, Jinhyuk quickly ran off.

Soyeon watched his retreating figure, pursing her lips in dissatisfaction. Why was he in such a hurry? Did he not want to talk to her?

“Well, forget it then.”

With a snort, Soyeon visited the cafe alone.

I decided to treat myself to something sweet to relieve some stress.

So, I stepped into the cafe.

But.

“Huh?”

Inside the cafe, I saw familiar faces.

“…Why are they here?”

It was none other than Lee Jinhyuk and Yoo Seolhyun.